​ As expected, or rather as was natural, he was this village’s leader.

​ The villagers all had the same physique as Guy and the others. It was just Darg that was so abnormal.

​ Given that I was somewhat insecure about what I’d do if a ton of men similar to him came out, I felt relieved.

​ [Take it.]

​ When Darg waved towards the behemoth’s meat, the women grunted in response to show that they understood.

​ I cocked my head to the side upon seeing that.

​ [What’re you doing? Follow.]

​ [Ah, yeah. I’m coming.]

​ My thoughts interrupted by Darg’s voice, I followed behind him in a panic.

​ Reaching the village’s center, I saw a building constructed to be noticeably larger than the others.

​ The floor was dug out slightly with the roof constructed in a pyramid-like shape. There was nothing that could be called furniture, only some straw spread out across the ground and a few earthenware items.

​ [Hmm? Sit. A meal is on the way.]

​ Saying that, Gar lowered himself onto the straw.

​ The house might be this big simply to house his large build.

​ Even I could sit down in it without feeling cramped.

​ [Still though, what you did back there was amazing. For you to be able to sever the neck of such a large creature…]

​ [It’s nothing to fuss about.]

​ [Can anyone else do the same thing then?]

​ [Not likely, eh?]

​ Darg answered my question along with a derisive smile.

​ [Why are you the only one who’s so big and strong?]

​ [Because that’s how it is.]

​ As expected, he’s similar to me and Nina in that he’s a [Natural Magus].

​ It’s wasn’t due to technology or study, it was due to his own talent.

​ [What about you? Are there many big lizards that talk?]

​ [No, that’s just me.]

​ To be precise, dragons do have their own language.

​ But even so, I haven’t met any dragons other than mother. So, at the very least, there being many of us isn’t the case.

​ Thinking about it more, it was natural. If there were so many over-engineered creatures in the same place, their surroundings would quickly be left bereft of food.

​ Which is probably another reason why mother urged me into leaving the nest after ten years.

​ [Heh.]

​ Even though Darg was the one to ask, he simply responded halfheartedly.

​ It was around that point that our food was brought to us.

​ [Ooh… this is…]

​ I started to speak out in admiration.

​ Because it was a soup made out of various wild plants, mushrooms, and beast meat poured into a clay pot.

​ This is the first time since I’ve come to this world that I feel like I’ve seen its [Cuisine].

​ [It’s delicious, try it.]

​ [Yeah…]

​ As he recommended me to do, I poured the soup into my mouth.

​ I had a sensitive tongue when it came to heat in my previous life, so I was happy at being reborn as a red dragon, something that would never be burned by eating even the most steaming hot foods.

​ “Ooh…!”

​ Tasting it on my tongue, I let out a groan.

​ Even while being so chewy, the wild plants weren’t overpowering at all.

​ The dried meat oozed flavor the more I chewed it, the mushrooms’ ability to exude a mellow taste as they melted when they touched my tongue was mysterious.

​ And the soup that was able to merge all of them together was delicious. Very delicious.

​ As though nourishment permeated into my core the moment it touched my tongue, it was delicious enough that I trembled. I feel like I’d gulp down however much of this they could give me.

​ Since they headed back to the village, I feel sorry for Guy and the others for not being able to try this.

​ [You’re just a lizard, but you can still tell it’s delicious, eh?]

​ Seeing me gulp it down and sigh in satisfaction, Darg made a comment.

​ Now that he mentions it, it’s true. It feels like it might be due to there being no recreational amusement besides meals, but in my previous life, I was rather uninterested when it came to food. Maybe it’s because dragon tongues are better than human tongues?

​ [Could you tell me how this is made?]

​ I asked the woman who brought us the soup.

​ However, she only looked back at me with a puzzled expression.

​ I suddenly recalled that sense of incompatibility I felt when I arrived at this village.

​ Could it be…

​ [This person doesn’t know the language?]

​ [Yeah, that’s right.]

​ Darg shouldn’t be the only one that knows how to speak.

​ At the very least, the men that went with him were able to follow his orders.

​ Which means they understood what he was saying.

​ [You didn’t teach the women language?]

​ [Of course not?]

​ Darg frowned, his brows knit in confusion.

​ What’s this guy talking about?

​ That’s what his expression seemed to say.

​ [What meaning is there in teaching women how to speak?]

​ I somehow managed to keep myself from grimacing.

​ I kept telling myself that there’s nothing I could do about it.

​ This world and the era it’s in dictates that that line of thought was mostly reasonable.

​ [Seeing how you like eating that, what do you think of this?]

​ As I was thinking about a few depressing things, Darg showed me a large pot with something that smelled good in it.

​ [What’s this?]

​ Smelling a mysterious scent I hadn’t smelled before, I sniffed it.

​ It was like fruit, yet far more potent. However, it was a different kind of sweetness than what candies had. It was more rich and had more of a depth to it.

​ [Try drinking it.]

​ Urged on, I slowly stretched my tongue out to it and licked it despite the anxiety and anticipation to this unknown substance.

​ Immediately after, lightning coursed through my body.

​ “Th-this is…”

​ The first thing I experienced was the mellow and rich sweetness of berries. Not just on my tongue, but within my nasal cavity as well.

​ No, it actually felt like I wanted to have more. I inclined the pot towards me.

​ It felt as though my throat grew hot and like vitality was bursting from my belly.

​ “This… is alcohol?”

​ By the time that wound up drinking enough to fill a cup, I finally realized it.

​ I hardly enjoyed drinking alcohol at all in my previous life. I didn’t much like its taste and just one or two cups was enough to make my face redden.

​ But what about this promising flavor? I even felt comfortable simple by exhaling in this pleasant aftertaste. It’s so good that I’m suddenly feeling bad about not being able to enjoy this in my previous life.

​ With the sun high up in the blue sky, I realized that I’d slept till noon.

​ Had Darg already left for hunting?

​ I didn’t see any men nearby to send him a message and the women wouldn’t be able to understand me.

​ Oh well, Ai and the others are probably worrying about me right now, so let’s head back.

​ Suddenly coming up with an idea, I took off a scale and left it inside Darg’s house.

​ It stung, but it was only about as bad as pulling out a beard hair.

​ Flapping my wings, I took off into the air. It shouldn’t take long to get back if I went through the air.

​ All things said, I guess I’m still weak against alcohol.

​ Well, I don’t think that drinking four of those large pots could be considered weak, so let’s say that I’m weak when it comes to resisting its temptation. But now that I think about it, be it eastern or western myths, dragons being weak against alcohol was basically a standard. I should be more careful.

​ Nina’s probably angry, huh. Ai will be worrying…

​ Soaring through the sky while thinking about that, I reached Ai and the others’ village surprisingly quickly and descended. Now then, time to listen to Nina’s scolding…

​ “Mentor!”

​ Those thoughts vanished immediately upon seeing Guy and the others’ injuries and the look on Ken’s face.